:: meanders ::

:: The Language Police, by Diane Ravitch

The damage that bias and sensitivity reviewers have done to schoolbooks and exams almost defies belief. But eminent education historian Diane Ravitch documents it all here, and does so with a sustained sense of outrage as to the effect this mostly below-radar censorship is having on the quality of instruction available to U.S. schoolchildren.Richmond Times Dispatch

I found it difficult to provide "the" best review for this most important book-- and if successful-- movement to put a stop to censorship of school books. Bias and sensitivity censorship has its proponents on both sides. Diane Ravitch has no political axe to grind and in an appearance at Harvard School of Education, televised again today on C-SPAN, Ravitch identifies the culprits tidily, to paraphrase, saying the right has dominated censorship of topics, eg the tsunami of Harry Potter banning, while the left is king of the hill, er, quee.., er, chair of politically correct words.

References to bacon and eggs and ice cream also are growing in disfavor because of concerns over healthy eating habits. Mention of birthday parties has been barred for fear of upsetting children who do not get invited to them.WorldNetDaily.com
The Little Engine that Could was barred because the train is male.

It seems an issue of common sense, but it is rare that politics, and a $3B textbook industry held by four companies, display common sense. What is troublesome is the power entrusted to those responsible for the education of our youth, secretly as it turns out in Ravitch's research. Corruption of the language by censorship of words is only a small part. Entire books have been edited to remove objectionable words, without, of course, the knowledge of the writer. Well, the story goes on and will continue to do so until there is a significant backlash, and threat to the publishing rice bowl.amazon.com link